The present invention relates to a modification planning arrangement for a paper or board machine, a finishing machine, or a pulp machine, which arrangement includes, as parties to it, a customer, a main supplier, and at least one sub-supplier, and a server connected to the parties over a telecommunications network. Each of the parties is equipped with terminal equipment and software for viewing an image stored in the server and for communication taking place over a data network, the image-viewing software including a mark-up function for attaching a mark-up to the image and for storing the mark-up in the server, as its own mark-up file connected to the image, and in which the main supplier has at its disposal a high-level computer-aided design (CAD) system, for creating original images.
Paper manufacturers have responded to the continual increase in paper consumption by increasing their production capacity and by allocating existing capacity to producing the paper grades, for which demand has increased. In addition, the development of printing technology has subjected paper grade properties to greater demands, which existing machines may be incapable of meeting. Investments in new machines tie up a great deal of capital, so that modifying, i.e. altering to meet the customer's requirements, existing machines used to manufacture paper grades, for which demand has dropped, is an important alternative to building an entirely new machine. Other factors leading to modification decisions include cutting production-process costs, increasing production, improving quality, and improving process safety.
The modification of machines and their constituent equipment often involves not only the actual main supplier, but also sub-suppliers, who supply components. The implementation of modifications can therefore involve several different parties, each with its own sub-area of responsibility and delivery target. Smooth and rapid implementation demands that all parties co-operate seamlessly and promptly and that the customer's production schedules are taken into account.
If the machine to be modified is located, for example, on another continent to the main supplier and sub-suppliers, problems will arise, particularly in scheduling the planning of the modification. All the suppliers participating in the planning must know, for example, what components they will be responsible for, as well as the components' dimensions and positions relative to both the other suppliers' components and to the existing equipment layout. For example, if one sub-supplier cannot supply a particular component, but must replace it with one of a different type or size, the sub-supplier concerned must send notification of the change to the main supplier, who must then in turn notify the other parties to the modification of the change. The changed plans may consequently create delivery problems for some other sub-suppliers, who will subsequently ask their own questions and/or alter the plan. If many changes are made to the plan, the main supplier's resources will be tied up for a long time to forwarding a diversifying series of changes and queries. For example, failure to notice how a change by one sub-supplier will affect another essential sub-supplier, and to inform it of the change, may lead to conflicts in the plan, and to even more time being wasted in resolving them. Thus, even achieving a final plan for the modification may take up to several months, as questions and answers to them slowly filter through from the parties at different times. Self-evidently, planning carried out in this way will delay the start of the modification and thus be extremely unprofitable to the paper manufacturer.
Network-assisted workgroup planning has been researched by several different entities—the following university-level research being available:    1) Salminen, Yassine, Riitahuhta: A Strategic Management Framework Collaborative Product Development, 4th International Conference on Engineering Design and Automation, ED & A, Orlando, Fla., USA, 30 Jul.–2 Aug. 2000.    2) Abramovici, et al., “Application of Product Data Management Technology for Enterprise-wide Distributed Product Development,” in Jakucci et al. (eds.), “Globalization of Innovation, Agility and Virtual Enterprise,” Conference PROLAMAT; Trento, Italy, 9–12 Sep. 1998.    3) Liston, Fischer, Kunz: “Requirements and Benefits of Interactive Information Workspaces in Construction,” 8th International Conference on Computing in Civil and Building Engineering, Stanford University Silicon Valley, California, USA, August 2000.
The two first publications deal with the distribution of PDM (product data management) information in a data network and, on the other hand, in the various levels of subcontracting. The third concentrates on project planning in construction projects. The presentations are quite theoretical and are difficult to exploit in modifications of paper and pulp process equipment. It is not wished to distribute a large amount of information as such to all parties and, on the other hand, the bandwidth of the data network should be kept narrow. The processing of drawings forms an obvious bottleneck in known systems.
Cimmetry Systems, Inc., USA, has published the AutoVue® computer program, which allows 200 different image formats to be viewed over a network. In addition, the viewing program includes a so-called “mark-up” function, which allows mark-ups to be made on top of an image. A mark-up of this kind is stored as a file, which can be used by others immediately, if they have selected the use of the relevant function. Though in this case the mark-up file can be distributed, it is difficult to update it in a workgroup. Specific problems relate both to data security and to the limitations of the data network. The original drawings are in some high-level CAD format, for example, the CATIA or AutoCAD formats—often precisely in different formats. The program includes compressing data transfer. A considerable amount of inessential, but confidential information is connected to the original images, so that a workgroup system equipped with only the AutoVue® or similar viewing software is in no way ready for the intended planning task.
The OPTIWISE workgroup software developed by the Finnish company Stonesoft Oy permits network-based workgroup planning, in which a search can be made for factors relating to a product and its properties. The basic principles used are a product database and an intelligent user interface. In this case, the program can be used to quickly determine the critical factors, if it is wished to increase the paper web speed. However, this program cannot be used to process drawings, which is essential in modification planning.